Today, On 19th May, The Supreme Court refused to recall its earlier direction that stray dogs taken from public places such as hospitals, bus stands, schools and railway stations must not be released back after vaccination or sterilisation. It also allowed authorities to euthanize rabid and dangerously aggressive stray dogs.
The Supreme Court declined to recall its earlier directions that stray dogs picked up from public places such as hospitals, bus stands, schools, railway stations, and similar locations should not be released back to the same places after vaccination/sterilisation.
A bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta, and Justice NV Anjaria dismissed a set of applications seeking modifications to the Court’s directions issued in November last year.
The apex court issued a major ruling that permits authorities to euthanize rabid and dangerously aggressive stray dogs.
The decision was delivered as part of the court’s verdict on petitions requesting changes to its earlier directions regarding the relocation of stray dogs.
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The Supreme Court ordered,
“Authorities may, in accordance with the Animal Birth Control rules and other applicable statutory protocols, take legally permissible measures, including euthanasia in cases involving incurably ill, rabid or demonstrably dangerous/aggressive dogs to effectively cure the threat posed to human life and safety,”
Pointing to reports of rising dog-bite incidents especially affecting children and senior citizens the Supreme Court declined to alter its previous directives requiring authorities to remove stray dogs from public spaces.
The court further criticised state governments for allegedly failing to comply with the earlier instructions.
Last year, the court directed authorities to remove stray dogs from public places such as hospitals, parks, and railway stations, and instead shift them to shelters.
It also ruled that sterilised dogs must not be released back to the same areas they were found in. In addition, the court prohibited public feeding of dogs, except in designated locations.
Several NGOs and dog lovers had approached the Supreme Court seeking modifications to the order.
Previously, on August 22, 2025, a three-judge special bench headed by Justice Vikram Nath, along with Justices Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria, modified its earlier August 11 order that had prohibited the release of stray dogs from shelters.
The suo motu case was initiated on July 28, following media reports of rising stray dog attacks and rabies cases, particularly among children in Delhi.
Additionally, An earlier order of August 11, passed by a Bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, had created huge controversy. That order had directed that all stray dogs in Delhi-NCR must be caught and sent to shelters within eight weeks.
The earlier order had led to strong nationwide protests from animal rights organisations, after which the present three-judge Bench changed those directions.
In the revised instructions, the Bench placed emphasis on vaccinating, sterilising and releasing stray dogs as per the Animal Birth Control Rules. After that, the Court widened the scope of the matter and passed several interim directions on connected concerns.
Importantly, on November 7, 2025, the Court issued an interim order asking all States and the NHAI to clear stray animals from highways and from institutional spaces such as hospitals, schools and educational campuses across India.
The Court also asked that both government and private educational and medical institutions be fenced within eight weeks to avoid stray dog attacks. It further directed that dogs taken away from these institutional areas must not be released back into the same locations.
Several petitions were later filed to challenge the November 7 directions.
Case Title: In Re: “City Hounded by Strays, Kids Pay Price” v. The State of Andhra Pradesh
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